


Family of Five

by Derenieh_Maeverin



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Implied Sexual Content, Kidnapping, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-18
Updated: 2018-03-18
Packaged: 2019-04-04 10:08:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14017929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Derenieh_Maeverin/pseuds/Derenieh_Maeverin
Summary: Shikamaru, Neji, and Tsukiko have a beautiful family and a wonderful life, but it is not easy to maintain considering their heritages and skills.Neji is gone and Shikamaru and Tsukiko are kidnapped...but why?





	Family of Five

Tsukiko looked over the counter where she was chopping vegetables for dinner. She took in the scene slowly, as if to commit it in all of it’s entirety to memory. The walls of the living room were coated with a fresh wash of soft taupe paint. The sliding glass door that led out and into the Nara Forest was opened slightly, and two deer, a fawn and his mother were grazing peacefully a mere one hundred yards into the clearing their property sat on. They lifted their heads and raised their ears as a breeze rustled the leaves of the tall acacia trees around them and carried into the woman’s home. By the time the wind reached her, it was but a tickle on her cheek which she closed her eyes momentarily to experience. Inhale. 1. 2. 3. Exhale 1. 2. 3.

The auburn-eyed woman put her mixture of chopped carrots, snow peas, and cabbage into a pan she had waiting on the stove and turned back to her work space. She found herself distracted once again by something in front of her. The wooden Shogi board lay still on the dark coffee table in the middle of the living room, untouched for almost two weeks. No one could bring themselves to play when he was gone. He, who taught them to play with such patience and encouragement, but who also never went easy and won almost every time. Their beloved strategist. The room felt almost chilly without his burning passion for his family and the smoky tone of his voice.

Noticing that she had zoned out again, Tsukiko shook her head, as if the physical back and forth movement was all it took to pull herself back into the present moment, and pulled on some oven mitts to remove the fish from the oven. Pain. Sharp, then throbbing. Breathe in. 1. 2. 3…

She set the entree to the side and exhaled slowly. Quite often, Tsukiko found herself caught between the frustration of having to deal with the inconvenient and downright disruptive force of pain there and the relief that it existed. She supported herself on one outstretched arm, hand gripping the edge of the counter, and rubbed at the ache, feeling more frustrated than she would admit out loud. This pain is good. I am grateful for the opportunity to experience this. This pain is worth it. She chanted affirmations in her head to get through it. And they worked.  
And then, a bright and energetic giggle broke through her haze and nearly erased the pain entirely from her conscious.

The sight she laid her eyes upon warmed her heart and brought a soft smile to her lips. Her son was laughing due to the silly faces her husband was making. At that moment, the man had his cheeks puffed out and his eyes crossed. His hands were by his face, thumbs at his temples, and fingers splayed open, mimicking a buck or an elk.

Kantoro, although a little unsteady on his shoeless feet, was standing in front of Neji, giggling at his faces. His hair, in a disarray of spikes similar to Shikamaru and deep, vibrant purple reminiscent of his mother, hung long and unruly to his neck. Tsukiko was almost sure that his brown doe-like eyes were shining at Neji.

“Papa!” He exclaimed as he stumbled into his father’s arms. Neji’s crystalline eyes drew her attention up and what she saw was happiness and pride. Although, biologically, Kantoro was Shikamaru’s son, Neji was just as much his father. It brought the usually stoic man so much joy to have his boy acknowledge that.

Tsukiko placed a hand on her swollen tummy and allowed her smile to linger and her thoughts to drift. They had not planned to have a baby at all. They hadn’t even planned to come together as three. They had grown close over the countless missions together as assassin, strategist, and medic, and the harmless efforts to comfort one another in the face of death and failure had blossomed, over time, into what they had now. A particularly challenging mission had led to a particularly intimate encounter in provided sleeping quarters on the last night before returning to their homeland. Tsukiko had known only a few days later, but the ensuing anxiety and fear of what the others would say had her quiet for weeks until she woke up ill one early morning before the sun had begun to tint the sky a pale blue. She had confessed that her illness was the result of being with child, tears making smooth track marks down her face, when questioned about her condition. Shikamaru’s tanned skin had paled in that moment, and the room had been silent until the sun was high in the sky. When Neji finally spoke, it had shocked the other two out of their thoughts. He had always wanted a child. Shikamaru gave no opinion on the matter. They kept the baby. When Kantoro was born with deep brown eyes and a slender nose like Shikamaru, the man fell in love instantly, as many fathers do. Although the boy lacked the key characteristic of the Hyuga clan, the crystalline iris of their Ability, Neji accepted the infant as his own immediately. Kantoro was both of theirs from the moment he entered this world. 

In just a few weeks, their family would grow to include another and the circle would be complete.

What pulled Tsukiko back to the moment at hand changed as frequently as what drew her away in the first place. But maybe that was just a product of her busy life as a wife, mother, and on-leave medic. This time: A roughness near her jawline followed by the familiar smell of smoke and oakwood. His lips on her cheek preceded his strong hands resting just below hers on her protruding belly. She turned her head and the corners of her mouth turned up into the kiss they shared.

“How was the assignment?” Tsukiko asked as she turned back to her husband and child.

“Tch. infuriating. Their wartime strategy was an absolute train wreck. They didn’t take too kindly to me calling their general an idiot.”

“Shikamaru Nara.” Tsukiko laughed through her mock surprise. “No one wants to hear that their efforts are worthless. Especially from the strongest nation on this continent.”

“Yeah well, I’ve never been one to go easy have I?”

Tsukiko shook her head, amused by it all.

“Sakura had to keep things civil.”

“I’m sure she was very busy over the last two weeks.”

“Still can’t hold your tongue huh Nara?” Neji chimed in from across the room.

“No control whatsoever. They needed my honest opinion anyways. They wouldn’t have lasted fifteen minutes under attack and the entire town would have been wiped.”

Neji handed the young boy on the floor a wooden toy he had been reaching for and rose gracefully to his feet. The air from his forward movement caught his ebony locks and knocked them back as he moved.

Neji came up toe to toe with Shikamaru and their eyes locked. A silence lingered between them for a short time. The smoky scent of one swirled and mixed with the mild floral scent of the other. Neji tilted his head down just a bit and placed a soft kiss to Shikamaru’s lips. 

Tsukiko blushed despite her familiarity with the situation. Seeing two strong, stoic, private men being so openly intimate, always brought heat to her cheeks. It still felt a little erotic, and was certainly considered taboo amongst the eldest in their town. She shook away the heat she felt rising elsewhere as being inappropriately-timed.

“Welcome home Shika.” The ice-eyed man uttered and took several steps back.

Kantoro, who had crawled with determination across the tatami floors towards the space between the living room and the kitchen, chose that moment, in all of his perfect toddler timing and wisdom to notice his dad and shout “DADA” loud enough to make his parents cringe. Shikamaru recovered quickly and kneeled down to pulled Kantoro into his arms.

“There’s my little shadow. I missed you more than anything little man.”

Tsukiko watched as Shikamaru walked away with Kantoro in tow. Then tension in his shoulders and back seemed to ripple away as he held his boy for the first time in weeks. She heard that smoky tone carry through the room as the man whispered affections to his son. He would likely take leave from work the next day to spend the entire time with Kantoro.

Neji interrupted her musings this time with an offer to help finish dinner. She accepted, and he kissed her cheek and smoothly grabbed the knife she was using to chop peppers. She obliged and moved back towards the stove.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

“He’s sound asleep.” Neji murmured into the dimness of the room.

“He’s been asleep for quite some time now. You were in there for almost two hours.” The knowing edge in her tone lifted the corners of his mouth into a subtle smile. He removed his pale yukata and tied back his long dark hair as he crossed the room.

“You’ve caught me. It’s never been so hard to have to leave on assignment.” Neji sighed as he sat on the edge of their bed.

“Yeah, but coming home at the end feels so damn good.” Shikamaru offered in a voice rough with age, experience, and a smoking habit he couldn’t quite kick. He entered the room from the adjoining bathroom and took a seat next to Neji. The mattress beneath them sank lower still as Tsukiko joined them. “When do you leave?” Shikamaru asked.

“Late night. Long before the sun is due to rise. Travel to the Island of Sand is expected to take longer due to a storm passing through, and the assignment is very time sensitive.”

“Are you expected to return before the baby comes?” The worry she felt was palpable in their shared space. She looked passed her belly towards the floor as she fiddled with her hands and waited for a response. 

“If everything goes according to plan, I shall arrive two days before the birth, but if I am still on this assignment, I will be sent for when you arrive at the hospital. And Shikamaru will be there no matter what.” Neji’s confidence served to ease her anxiety, but her point was not lost.

“I want you both there. This baby deserves it’s whole family in attendance when it arrives.” Her gaze was firm and resolved as she locked eyes with one and then the other man for a moment.

“You don’t have to tell me twice.” Shikamaru threw his hands up under the line of fire. “Neji you’d better listen up. You don’t wanna be at the end of this women’s fists.” Neji smiled as he climbed further onto the bed to take his place for the night on an outside edge to make leaving easier as Tsukiko laughed quietly. She followed his lead and settled on her side in the middle and Shikamaru filled in the empty space on the left.

“He’s right you know.” She said as she ran her fingers through Neji’s silky strands splayed across the pillow he rested his head on. “These hands of mine can bring deadly harm as quick as they can heal wounds.” She watched his expression shift from amusement to awareness as the dim light in the room shut off behind her.

“Tsukiko. Moon Child. Your name gives little to tell of the power you hold. But I have seen you in action. No one knows better than Shikamaru and I.” The countless hours of training and endless missions together saw to that.

“Ah but your name gives everything away? Neji. The solitary man? Lonely and cold? Not in the slightest if I have anything to say about it. Neji Hyuga. He who is slow to warm, but who loves so deeply.”

“Yeah yeah and I’m Shikamaru Nara. Quick-witted and clear-thinking. But right now I just wanna get some sleep. Have you both forgotten that I just returned from an assignment a few hours ago?” His mock-grumpiness served to quiet the room, but he hadn’t intended to inspire total silence out of his husband and wife. He gave an audible sigh. “I’m sorry.”

“It is quite alright Shikamaru. I should rest anyways. I won’t get much sleep over the next few weeks.” Neji shifted to face his wife. “Good night to you both. I will return before you know it.”

“Be safe Neji.”  
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Tsukiko’s eyes shot open at the sound of glass smashing against the wood floor somewhere in their home. She immediately began trying to push herself up and was helped by Shikamaru’s rough hands at her elbow and back. The rapid beating in her chest brought her attention to full capacity. “What’s going on?”

“Someone is in the house. Go to Kantoro. I’ll handle whatever it is.” His touch remained gentle, but his tone was urgent. As soon as she was on her feet, he was gone. 

Tsukiko hurried down the wide hallway, feet shuffling along the cool tatami floors. She reached her son’s room and placed a hand on the slightly open door. Her other hand began to glow a pale green in anticipation of needing to attack. Being grazed by this aura, an ability passed down through her family, could disarm any man. She usually only used it for healing, but didn’t shy away from incapacitating an enemy whenever necessary. One touch in the right place could kill. The woman pushed the door open slowly and stepped inside.

The room was empty except for her child who hadn’t stirred. Tsukiko’s shoulders visibly dropped and the breath she was holding escaped in a rush. The glow in her hand faded as she approached Kantoro’s crib. The urge to hold her child overwhelmed her motherly instinct to let him sleep, so she placed her hands under the top bar and pressed the buttons there to released the locks and slowly lower the gate. And as she reached down to pick up her little boy, everything went black.  
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Tsukiko struggled to open her eyes. She attributed the haziness in her skull to the throbbing at her right temple. The rapid blinking was not helping her adjust to the inky blackness surrounding her, and she discovered soon after that she could not get up as her ankles and wrists were cuffed and secured to the icy concrete beneath her.

“Tsukiko.” Shikamaru’s rough voice grabbed her attention immediately. “Are you okay?”

Tsukiko took stock of the rest of her body. Her forearms were sore, probably from the grip of whoever carried her here. Her calves ached from the pressure of having her entire body’s weight resting solely on them. She couldn’t discern any other physical problems, so she nodded in the direction that his voice had come from. She then realized that he probably couldn’t see the gesture.

“Yeah.” She rasped. It felt like there was sand in her throat. “Where are we? What happened?”

“We’ve been kidnapped. I don’t know why. It could be anything.” His tone was hard with anger, and panic began to rise in her chest.

“Where is Kantoro?” She remembered reaching to pick him up from his crib, but her mind was blank after that. Was he here? Was he hurt?

“He isn’t here as far as I can tell. I didn’t hear him at all during the travel here. I was blindfolded though, so they could have incapacitated him to keep him quiet.” Shikamaru winced at the sound of his wife’s whimper. “I don’t think he’s here. I think they left him.”

Tsukiko didn’t know how to feel about that. If he was here, he could be hurt and scared. But if he was home, he was all alone and would wake in the morning to find his parents gone. She couldn’t control her breathing as horrible possibilities for the fate of her first-born raced through her head.

“D-does anyone know? Neji-” She froze. Neji had left on assignment just before this attack and wasn’t due back home for at least a week. Tsukiko tried to slow her panicked lungs and heart rate but her first successful attempt was cut off by a sharp pain in her abdomen strong enough to force a shout from her throat. “U-ugh my st-omach.” She stuttered out.

“The baby.” The tension in the air crackled around them as Shikamaru listened to his wife’s suffering. 

Her immediate response was to reach towards her swell. She was a medic and could assess the condition of the unborn inside her, but the chains tethering her to the ground cut the movement off at the hip. 

“I’ve gotta get you out of here.” He started thrashing, yanking on his own set of restraints, and shouting in the hopes of drawing attention to the room. “HEY! WHAT DO YOU WANT?! SHOW YOUR FACES!!”

Silence. Tsukiko’s groans had turned into quiet whimpers as she managed the excruciating pain. Shikamaru had alternated between trying to coach her through the pain and trying to cause enough of a scene to get someone into the room. And then a giant metal door swung open flooding the room with a blinding light. Tsukiko turned her face away and squeezed her eyes shut.

“Who are you?” Shikamaru growled. 

“Who I am doesn’t matter Shika-kun.” The bulky figure entered the room as he spoke. His voice was deep, but sickeningly sweet.

“What do you want?” Shikamaru managed to force out a calmer tone.

“Oh just a little something that would make me unstoppable…” Venom was dripping from his tongue as he spoke.  
Shikamaru’s eyes had begun to adjust, so he could make out very broad shoulders, a body completely clothed in black, and a mess of white hair atop their captor’s head. His body was turned toward toward Tsukiko, so Shikamaru couldn’t see his face.

“I want the Ability of the Hyuga Clan to expand my collection.”

“Tch. Looks looked like you’ve captured the wrong people. Clearly neither of us are of the Hyuga bloodline.” Shikamaru’s tone shifted cool as fog. “I would advise you to let us go before our entire nation arrives to rip you to shreds.” 

An amused and sinister laugh rang through the room, bouncing off the cinderblock walls and burning through the eardrums of it’s targets. “Oh I know exactly what you are and aren’t Nara.” The enemy chided. 

Shikamaru frowned before realization dawned. He heard Tsukiko whisper “Oh no” in horror as she came to the same realization. He was sweating, but it felt like his blood had frozen in his veins. He tried to shake the fear reaching up and clamping around his throat, making it hard to speak.

“The baby is mine.” He managed out in a hoarse voice.

The enemy’s voice turned hard in a split second.

“Don’t try to play with me boy. My men have been watching you since the union. We were there when you said your vows. The ceremony was quite beautiful.” His voice was poison candy again and the sound brought bile to Shikamaru’s throat.”Your every move alone and together. Every private and intimate moment you shared has been documented.” The brute kneeled in front of Tsukiko and placed his index finger under her chin. She didn’t respond as he lifted her gaze to his. “Shikamaru was away when this child was conceived. Isn’t that right, Tsuki?” Shikamaru paled, but the anger in his chest overcame the initial chill quickly. 

“Don’t touch her!” He shouted and pulled on his restraints to no avail. The man laughed. 

“I wonder what bothers you the most Shika-kun. Is it that your husband and wife are intimate without you? Or is it that she’s letting me touch her now without any resistance?”

“You son of a bitch-”

“Oh are you referring to little Kantoro?” The man interjected. “What a fitting title for him. How old is he now? 18 months I believe? It’s a shame he won’t know his father or his whore of a mother.”

“That baby is mine you bastard!” Shikamaru shouted and struggled against his restraints.

“Oh I highly doubt that Nara. But just in case you are right, we will be hauling the Hyuga in soon. Your pretty little wife will conceive again and I will have my prize.” He stood and walked to the door.

“Tenshi!” He shouted. “We will induce now!” Shikamaru’s eyes widened in shock. He was out of time. He looked over to his wife as their captor left the room and the sight of her felt like a knife to the heart. Her face was concealed because she was talking to her stomach, but heavy drops of water were splattering onto the concrete below. She was apologizing to the baby. All of the guilt for things that happened during the pregnancy were smothering her. The fall in the kitchen during month four and the awful eating habits throughout. The early bout of depression that made her question even wanting the baby. She couldn’t pull herself out of her head this time.

Shikamaru’s rage diffused immediately and transformed into something much more devastating and painful. So many things were running through his head. They were going to lose this child. The probability of them walking away with their lives was incredibly low. He could only hope that someone would visit their home when he didn’t show up at work and Kantoro didn’t show up to school. Could the toddler survive somehow for a week until Neji’s return? Neji...

His thoughts were interrupted by a woman entering the room. She was slight, quite thin, with fire red hair and deep coal eyes with a yellow ring around the pupil. She carried a long needle and a deadness in those eyes. The door shut behind her and the sound made Tsukiko lift her head. She immediately started begging hoping that she could say something to get through to this woman.

“Please. Please don’t do this. What can we do? We can give you money. O-or supplies.”

“Freedom. We can get you out of here.” Shikamaru offered up.

“Hm. Freedom.” The woman mumbled to herself. “Something I could never actually have. Not here.” Tenshi said as she knelt in front of Tsukiko. She stared off somewhere behind Tsukiko for a while. Tsukiko blinked away her tears and looked up at the woman. Her face looked so tired. She couldn’t have been over 25, but she looked to be in her mid-forties from the exhaustion in her expression. Tsukiko looked into the woman’s eyes. The peculiar coloring was something she had never seen before.

“...Did he take you?...For your eyes?” Tsukiko asked hesitantly.

The woman turned back to Tsukiko with a jolt as if she had been in another world entirely and had been yanked back into this one.

“Yes…but I’m a woman…”

“What does that mean?” Shikamaru asked. The woman did not turn to him, but she did respond.

“Ibato doesn’t like girls. He thinks that the power of the Ability in a female will not be as strong as a male.”

“Sexist bastard has no idea what he is talking about.” Shikamaru grumbled.

“Please.” Tsukiko started. “Tell me your story.”

“Why do you want to know? It won’t change anything that is going to happen here.” Tenshi’s eyes had turned hard. “You will lose your baby to this horrible man. You might even lose your life.”

“You don’t deserve anything that has happened to you here. And I have a baby who might suffer the same fate. I just want to know. Please.”

Tenshi breathed sharply out of her nose.

“My mother was taken from our compound by Ibato. He murdered my father who tried to protect her. Our clan was known for its Gantaisho Ability. Those with the eyes were world renown telepaths because of its power. I could lift buildings at the raise of my hand if Ibato hadn’t blocked off the spiritual pathways inside my body that allow me to access the power. My mother was the first in 70 years to have the eyes and Ibato found her…”

“I am so sorry Tenshi…” Tsukiko leaned forward and rested her forehead on Tenshi’s shoulder. The woman tensed, but didn’t move away.

“My mother was pregnant with me when she was taken...She died bringing me into this world. I had the eyes, but I was a girl. I have been here since birth...and now I am carrying his child.”

“Tenshi...Let us get you and your baby out of here.” 

Tenshi’s eyes had begun to water.

“It’s too late for him. I-I have a tracker and a device that will send an electric shock into my uterus. It would kill the baby.” Tenshi wiped her hand across her eyes to dry the tears. “I don’t have a choice...h-he’s done it before.”

“Tenshi please. We can help you. We can save you and your baby-”

“TENSHI!” Ibato’s voice boomed from outside and sent a jolt of fear though Tenshi’s body. She was practically shaking.

“I-I’m sorry.” Before Tsukiko could blink, there was a sharp pain in her neck and then a rush of liquid and a burning sensation. Time was up.

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't quite worked out how I'm gonna finish this piece, so I can't tell you when the second chapter will be out. Sorry about that! But I hope you enjoy what I have so far. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the piece :)


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